The Pacific Ocean was deathly silent.
Everyone, including Lei Gong and the great serpent manipulating everything from the shadows, stared at Ye Ling with disbelief, their mouths agape.
The Qilin Heavenly Thunder just unleashed was arguably Lei Gong's most powerful strike. Even in the immortal realm, only ancient, renowned High Gods could withstand such an attack head-on. Yet...
"No, no... this is impossible... How could my Qilin Heavenly Thunder be absorbed so easily?"
Lei Gong was utterly stunned, muttering repeatedly, unable to accept the reality.
In comparison, he felt like a complete failure.
Upon seeing Ye Ling devour Lei Gong's thunder beast Qilin, Dian Mu was first shocked, then filled with immense joy.
When Lei Gong had unleashed that attack earlier, Dian Mu had already prepared herself to be killed by Lei Gong.
She was powerless to stop Lei Gong's foolishness. Rather than fleeing now and facing the Jade Emperor's reckoning later, it would have been better to die here, giving her a chance at reincarnation.
But now, Ye Ling had easily blocked Lei Gong's Qilin Heavenly Thunder, averting a major disaster. Things were not as dire as they could have been.
Perhaps the Jade Emperor would still investigate this matter, but the target would be limited to Lei Gong, and no one else would be implicated.
Having narrowly escaped this calamity, Dian Mu was overwhelmed with emotion. She quickly flew before Ye Ling and respectfully bowed, "Many thanks to the High Immortal for your intervention. This humble immortal shall never forget your life-saving grace!"
The Martial God General's spiritual body, seeing Lei Gong's full-power attack absorbed so effortlessly by Ye Ling, realized he had indeed kicked a steel plate.
"Damn it... it's all over!"
Without hesitation, the Martial God General fled without looking back.
If he escaped now, he might still find a spirit in the mortal realm to possess, claiming a mountain as his own and living as a carefree king.
Although life might be harder than in the immortal realm, at least he would survive.
Staying here meant certain death!
However, the Martial God General didn't get far. Before Ye Ling could even make a move, the great serpent, also intending to escape, swallowed him whole.
After witnessing Ye Ling's power, the Tongtian tribe's great serpent realized that staying here would only lead to its capture by Ye Ling, with no hope of turning the tables!
Only by escaping could the Tongtian tribe return to its peak and complete what it had failed to achieve before.
And if the Martial God General escaped with it, its whereabouts might be exposed!
After devouring the Martial God General's soul, the Tongtian tribe's great serpent plunged into the sea, swimming rapidly towards a distant point beneath the waves.
Within a few blinks, the serpent reached the coast and spotted a crowd of humans playing by the sea.
"An opportunity!"
Seeing the crowd, the human-headed, snake-bodied serpent's face lit up with joy. It rapidly transformed into human form, swam to the shallow waters, concealed its aura, and mingled with the humans.
The humans playing by the sea were unaware of the monster lurking among them, their laughter filling the air.
The serpent walked among the crowd with a grim expression, its mood utterly foul.
The suddenly appearing Ye Ling had not only taken Tian Yuan's soul but also forced it to abandon all its treasures in the ancient city and flee in haste.
Now alone, and utterly unfamiliar with this world, it had no idea how to make a comeback.
"Forget it, I'll find another genius to parasitize... First, I need to get acquainted with this society," the serpent muttered. Suddenly, a small boy bumped into it.
"Sorry! Sorry!"
The little boy got up from the sand and repeatedly apologized to the serpent.
The serpent looked at the boy who had bumped into it, paused for a moment, and then a strange smile flickered in its eyes.
"A host!"
Excitement surged in the serpent's eyes. It reached out to grab the little boy's head.
But before it could touch the boy, Ye Ling grabbed its wrist.
The serpent trembled, struggling for a moment, but Ye Ling's grip was unyielding!
Ye Ling looked at the serpent, narrowing his eyes and smiling, "Not even sparing children? That's a bit much, isn't it?"
"You!"
Seeing Ye Ling suddenly appear beside it, the serpent's pupils contracted sharply. It was about to transform and create chaos to break free from Ye Ling.
But before it could act, Ye Ling pulled it and vanished from the spot.
The child, who had been apologizing, looked up and found that the person he had accidentally bumped into had disappeared. He was stunned.
"Where did that uncle go?"
...
Above the Pacific Ocean, within the celestial formation's mist.
Ye Ling, holding the great serpent, returned to face Lei Gong and Dian Mu.
When the serpent had attempted to flee, the threads controlling Lei Gong had already snapped.
Lei Gong came to his senses, knowing he had committed a heinous crime and would surely be held accountable by the Jade Emperor.
To atone for his sins, Lei Gong handed his magical artifact to Dian Mu, simultaneously restrained his cultivation, willingly allowed himself to be detained by Dian Mu, and personally reported the entire situation to the Jade Emperor.
This way, his punishment might be lighter.
Dian Mu's attitude towards Ye Ling had undergone a complete 180-degree shift. Upon seeing Ye Ling bring back the great serpent, she respectfully bowed deeply, "Many thanks to the High Immortal for resolving this calamity for us. I offer my apologies to the High Immortal for our previous offense."
"We hope the High Immortal will hand over this demonic creature to us so we may escort it to the Heavenly Court to await judgment."
With that, Dian Mu exchanged a look with Lei Gong and the two young immortal attendants.
Lei Gong and the other two immediately reacted, bowing to Ye Ling, "Many thanks to the High Immortal for your help in eradicating the demon!"
However, Ye Ling ignored their humble demeanor. Demonic energy surged from his palm, invading the serpent's head to extract its memories.
The serpent let out a piercing scream. As Ye Ling performed the soul extraction, he said to Dian Mu, "From beginning to end, I had no intention of saving you. On the contrary, I have yet to say that I forgive your previous offenses."
"My not acting against you now does not mean I am easily swayed."
"If you don't wish to die, you had best leave this place immediately while I am in a good mood."
Upon hearing Ye Ling's words, Dian Mu's expression shifted slightly.
Just as she was about to retort, she suddenly saw a shadowy figure emanating extreme pressure appear behind Ye Ling, causing her to tremble!
If she said another word, she would surely die!
For some reason, Dian Mu suddenly had this thought, and it wouldn't leave her mind.
Her heart filled with boundless fear, Dian Mu dared not speak another word to Ye Ling. She quickly bowed to him, then immediately grabbed Lei Gong and flew towards the heavens.
The other two immortal attendants, seeing this, also bowed to Ye Ling in a similar fashion and followed Dian Mu, not daring to linger for a moment longer.
Soon, the area of the sea fell silent.
The corpses of heavenly soldiers and giants floated quietly on the sea's surface, their crimson blood dyeing the water red.
As Dian Mu took Lei Gong away from the mortal realm, the celestial formations that had been set up around the area, as well as the corpses of heavenly soldiers and generals on the sea, all dissipated into light particles.
On the periphery of the celestial formation, various powerful individuals from different countries, who had been trying desperately to enter the battlefield, rejoiced as the dense fog suddenly dissipated. They rushed towards the center of the sea.
When they entered the battlefield and saw the giant corpses floating on the sea, and Ye Ling holding a struggling great serpent in the air, they were utterly stunned.
They forgot to breathe.
What...
What had happened here?